Recently I read “Transforming Church in Rural America” by Shannon O’Dell. Considering that I myself was in a transition from a smaller rural church to a larger urban church I found the book really interesting. In fact, it was so good I bought my old Sr. Pastor a copy. I would highly recommend this book for anyone preaching at or attending a rural church. Several of the topics raised were excellent and O’Dell encourages his readers to make rural church relevant and innovative, not boring and traditional. He encourages his readers to find various ways to make their church more effect at reaching the lost. I was also impressed because normally in these kinds of books there’s an assumption that if you’re doing things right you’re going to end up growing into a mega-church which is unlikely for rural churches. The book is real and practical and I would strongly recommend it.